A pub landlord and his family have been left ‘baffled’ by a series of ghostly goings on at their pub.

Carl Williams, landlord of the Craven Heifer in Rawtenstall, and his fiance, Liz Corcoran, were shocked when a ghostly pair of child’s legs appeared on photographs of their cellar taken for insurance purposes after it flooded on boxing day.

The 191-year-old Burnley Road pub was closed at the time, the only people in it two cleaning contractors, Liz and the couple’s two-year-old daughter, Hannah.

Carl, 45, said: “We can’t work out how the legs appeared! The photo was taken looking up the cellar steps. I don’t believe in hauntings but this has me baffled.

"The contractors couldn’t wait to get out of there but we just thought it was because the cellar roof’s low and they had to stoop down. They didn’t say a word but then the brewery boss showed me the photos.

“I thought it was a hoax at first as I don’t believe in ghosts but Liz does and was freaked out. The legs look like a child’s to me.”

But the strange incident is not the first the couple, who took over the pub in October, have witnessed. Carl said: “Once my fiancee was waiting for a taxi to pick up the kids from school. Hannah was toddling around behind the bar then stood at the closed cellar door and started to have a conversation!

“Her vocabulary isn’t good but her ‘hello’ and ‘goodbye’ were clear. Liz and Hannah were the only people in the building.”

There have been spooky goings-on in the ladies toilets too. Carl said: “A plumber was working in the gents’ and the hot tap started running in the ladies’. It’s happened before when the pub has been closed and they’re taps you have to turn on.”

But Carl remains sceptical. He said: “A river runs underneath the pub and there have been a few deaths nearby over the years. Customers talk about strange shadows too but a fly flitting across a light bulb can cause that.”

He added: “We heard one tale though where a customer told the last landlord someone was waiting to be served. The L-shaped bar means you can’t always see who’s waiting, but when the landlord turned round there was no-one there.

"Some of the staff get nervous in the pub alone but what’s happened hasn’t put me off. It’s a lovely pub. If anyone can shed light on the matter though, we’d love to know.”